Vladimir Kononov

Vladimir Kononov (14 October 1974-) was the Minister of Defense of the Donetsk People's Republic from 15 August 2014, succeeding Igor Girkin.

Biography
Vladimir Kononov was born on 14 October 1974 in Hirkse in the Ukrainian SSR of the Soviet Union (present-day Ukraine). Kononov, a local of Donetsk, was pro-union with Russia after the Ukrainian Revolution of February 2014. Kononov became a member of the Donetsk People's Republic military and was appointed Minister of Defense on 15 August 2014, confirmed in the post after Igor Girkin's resignation.